The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Hybrid Tea Rose plant, botanically known as Rosa hybrida, commercially used as a cut flower, and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name Predemera.
The new cultivar is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Rijsenhout, The Netherlands. The objective of the breeding program was to develop cut Rose varieties with novel and attractive flower colors, long and strong stems, dark leaves, and good postproduction longevity.
The new cultivar originated from a cross made by the Inventor in 1994 of two proprietary selections. The proprietary selection P-151 was the female, or seed, parent and the proprietary selection 93-221 was the male, or pollen, parent. The cultivar Predemera was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross in a controlled environment in Rijsenhout, The Netherlands. Compared to plants of the parent selections, plants of the new Rose differ in flower color and have a longer postproduction longevity.
Asexual propagation of the new cultivar by cuttings taken at Rijsenhout, The Netherlands, has shown that the unique features of this new Hybrid Tea Rose plant are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of xe2x80x98Predemeraxe2x80x99. These characteristics in combination distinguish the new Hybrid Tea rose as a new and distinct cultivar:
1. Light greenish and ivory-colored flowers that are mostly green on the under side of the petals and mostly ivory on the upper side of the petals.
2. Long and strong flowering stems.
3. Dark green leaves.
4. Good flower production.
5. Excellent postproduction longevity.
The new Hybrid Tea Rose plant can be compared to the commerical Hybrid Tea Rose cultivars Prebian, not patented, and Pretaner, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 11,272. However, in side-by-side comparisons conducted in Rijsenhout, The Netherlands, plants of the cultivar differed from plants of the cultivars Prebian and Pretaner in the following characteristics:
1. Plants of the new Hybrid Tea Rose produce about 10 percent fewer flowering stems per square meter than plants of the cultivars Prebian and Pretaner.
2. Plants of the new Hybrid Tea Rose have slightly shorter flowering stem length than plants of the cultivars Prebian and Pretaner.
3. Plants of the new Hybrid Tea Rose have slightly narrower leaves than plants of the cultivars Prebian and Pretaner.
4. Plants of the new Hybrid Tea Rose have obtuse leaflet apices whereas plants of the cultivars Prebian and Pretaner have acute leaflet apices.
5. Flowers of plants of the new Hybrid Tea Rose are light green and ivory in color whereas flowers of plants of the cultivars Prebian and Pretaner are light yellow to white in color.
6. Flowers of plants of the new Hybrid Tea Rose are smaller than flowers of plants of the cultivars Prebian and Pretaner.
7. Flowers of plants of the new Hybrid Tea Rose do not open as fully as flowers of plants of the cultivars Prebian and Pretaner.
8. Flowers of plants of the new Hybrid Tea Rose have fewer petals than flowers of plants of the cultivars Prebian and Pretaner.
9. Plants of the new Hybrid Tea Rose have shorter peduncles than plants of the cultivars Prebian and Pretaner.
10. Plants of the new Hybrid Tea Rose have longer postproduction longevity than plants of the cultivars Prebian and Pretaner.
The new Hybrid Tea Rose plant has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary significantly with variations in environment such as temperature, light or fertility level, without, however, any variance in genotype.